chapter 23

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Sesshoumaru edged his way through the merry bustle of people. Everyone seemed
to be moving, mingling, and laughing. Thankfully, the crowd wasn't too thick,
and he was able to look around without too much trouble. It didn't hurt that
he was at least six inches taller than most of the males there.

He searched along the tables first and now he was picking through the
dance crowd. "So many people." Sesshoumaru glanced from person to person,
looking for the fifteen year old kid with dark hair and a small ponytail.
"Where are you, kid?" Not finding Miroku among the dancers, he turned and headed
for the other side of the festival, the darker part.

What Sesshoumaru found was the wide path leading into the park. It was
partitioned off with a long strip of red tape. For a long moment, he switched
glances from the tape to the darker pathway beyond it. Of course no
one was suppose to cross it. No one from the festival that is. But Miroku
came here earlier in the day, probably before everything was set up. There
was a chance Miroku was still in the park somewhere. It was all he had
to go on, so, he started back to his car. If he was to search in the dark,
he needed some light.

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It was getting cooler. Sango rubbed her arms while worriedly glancing around.
Miroku was still out and she still didn't know what to do. Sighing, Sango
curled up closer: leaning down and wrapping both arms around his shoulders
and back, worried that he would get too cold. "I need to get you some help.
I need to go but..." She sat up and looked back at the pathway.
"If I leave, what will happen to you?"

For the first time in her life, Sango was at a loss as to what to do. She
had always been the "take charge", know what to do person, and now, all
she could do was just sit here and worry. She wanted to find help for him,
but she also wanted to stay and....protect him. Whoever done this
might come back. Sango knew she might not be a match for someone like that
but she was not without defenses. Her parents had made sure of that.
Anybody that dared to mess with her would find a rude surprise.

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The slow song ended. Inuyasha stepped back, feeling much heat in his face.
"So...what do we do now?"

Kagome, cheeks a little pink, backed up a step as well. She smiled.
At first, it was a soft smile, one that almost made him melt, then it fell some.
"I'd like to talk. Want to find a table?"

Inuyasha nodded. "Sure."

Kagome led him to a small table a good distance away from the noise; a quieter,
darker, more romantic table.

She sat down, and he sat down across from her. Trying not to show his nervousness,
Inuyasha forced his hands not to shake. "So...what do you want to talk about?"

Kagome traced the lines on the wooden table, her eyes set solidly on the
motion in contemplation. She then looked up, locked gazes with him, then looked
to the side. "I...don't know how to..." The young woman chewed her bottom lip,
sighed, then turned and caught his gaze again. "Inuyasha, I...."

Her small shoulders relaxed and she smiled. "Let's just talk. It doesn't
matter about what."

Inuyasha relaxed. "About what?"

"How old are you?"

That was a question he could answer. "I'm fifteen. I'll be sixteen in a
couple of months."

"Wow. We're the same age. I turned sixteen a month ago. It was great. I got
my driver's license."

She seemed so happy and he liked hearing all about her. "Do you live here?"

Kagome shook her head, and for a second he was fascinated by the way those
long, incredibly soft looking black waves slid over her shoulders. "No.
I live in Crescent Moon. Have you heard of it?"

He had. "Yeah. It's a small town to the south. Isn't it?"

"Mmm hmmm. I'm visiting my friend Sango. She moved here a few months ago. Me
and Sango grew up together. We went to the same school. I'm going to spend
spring break week with her."

There was something that had been bugging him, or rather, depressing him
since Kikyo had told him. "Is your school very big?"

She grinned and shook her head again. "Nah, we only have like a hundred
in each grade. It's a small school."

He braced himself in case she said yes. "So...you got a guy waiting for you
there?"

Kagome laughed. "Well, one is waiting on me. Probably
always will be. I dated him once but he wasn't what I was looking for."

So, Kikyo had lied. Big surprise there. He cleared his throat, hoping his
voice didn't crack. "What are you looking for?"

The pretty young woman sitting across from him paused. Her sweet smile and
calm gaze set on him and that very look heated up his insides. "I don't know.
But...I like what I found a few days ago in a little coffee shop."

It was a warm moment, but Inuyasha could not turn away and he was dazed in
silence. She really did like him. So..now what was he suppose to do? She
was only here for a week. They actually lived far apart. No way would he
ever be able to leave this city, and he doubted Kagome would drive over a
hundred miles to visit him. Yet, all he wanted was to know her: know who
she was, learn everything about her, be her....friend. "Kagome?"

"Yeah?"

Inuyasha, a small sadness in his heart, folded both arms on the table and
leaned forward some. "I'm...not the best person in the world. I've done
bad things. I don't go to school, haven't for five years now. I've been on
my own. I can't be with you...like a boyfriend. But...I can be...a friend.
It's all I got. Is that okay?"

She had been listening very carefully. Now, with a strange but knowing smile,
Kagome leaned forward. "I'd like that, Inuyasha."

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Sesshoumaru slowly walked down the pathway. It was dark, but his flashlight
did give enough light for searching around the bushes. Every few feet he
called out for Miroku.

He rounded a bushy corner and came upon a somewhat open space. Up ahead he
spotted a small building and a bench which was placed at the edge of the
cement walkway. Sesshoumaru stopped and flashed the light around the
building and trees next to it. "Miroku? Miroku? Kid? You here?"
He felt somewhat silly calling out to the dark shrubbery, but he squashed
that feeling and stood very still, listening.

"Hello?"

Sesshoumaru pricked his ears, inclining to listen toward the female voice.
A gentle rustling compelled him to take a step to his right in the direction
of the building and behind it. "Somebody there?"

"Yes, I need some help here."

The voice was definitely female and it was coming from behind the dark
bushes. Crunching over last falls leaves, Sesshoumaru parted branches and
made his way though the dense hedges. Searching with his flashlight, it lit
upon something, or somebody. Sesshoumaru turned the light back to that spot
and paused. In a leaf ridden clearing under a tree, a girl was sitting and
holding her hand up in front of her eyes. In her lap looked to be...
"Miroku?"

Sesshoumaru hurried to them and knelt down. The kid was shirtless but
had a dark shawl over his shoulders. His head was nestled in
the girl's lap, and he couldn't see the boy's face. "What happened to him?"

The girl's words were hesitant but strong. "I think he was mugged. I was afraid
to leave him alone. Do you know him?"

Sesshoumaru studied him from head to toe with the light along with the
clearing around him. His jeans were on but not buttoned. His
shirt was crumpled up a few feet away. The grass had been dug up in
some places and the smell.... Sesshoumaru recognized it as soon as it
hit him: blood and... It didn't look good. "Has he been out long?"

"I...I don't know. I don't know how long I've been sitting here. Thirty minutes
maybe."

Sesshoumaru grimaced. "I need to get him back to the hotel." He handed her
the flashlight. "Here...."

"Sango." She offered her name as she accepted the light.

"He took off his long trench coat then wrapped it as best he could
around Miroku. "Sango, I'm this kid's guardian. I'm going to pick him up
and carry him to my car. Thank you for your help. He'll be alright now."

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The tall man with dark hair picked Miroku up. Sango, muscles cold and
cramped, felt Miroku's head leave her lap. She stood on creaky legs while the
man settled Miroku in his arms. When he started to make his way through
the bushes, Sango, worried, forced her aching legs to move. "Hey..."

They stepped out of the bushes and he stopped in the middle of the
cement pathway. "What is it?"

Sango looked at Miroku. "I want to come with you."

Even in the dim half-light, she saw his brow raise. "Don't you need to
be getting home? You are too young to be out by yourself."

A little offended, but knowing he had a point, Sango tried to sound more
adult. "I know Miroku. I want to make sure he's okay. I came with a friend
to the park festival. We can follow you to the hotel."

Sesshoumaru turned away from her and began walking
back to the festival. "If that is what you want. I am staying at the
Beverly hotel. Room 7B. I won't wait on you to follow me."

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Inuyasha was about to ask Kagome what her favorite food was when he heard
someone call her name.

"Kagome!"

A young woman wearing a dark blue dress hurried to their table.
She seemed very flustered as she grabbed Kagome's attention. "Kagome,
we need to go. Miroku's been hurt."

Inuyasha did a double take. Did she just say Miroku?

"Miroku?" Kagome asked with a confused tone.

Sango nodded and grasped her arm, pulling her up. "Remember that boy I told
you about that I met by the park? Someone hurt him bad.
Please, Kagome. Go with me to the hotel where he's staying. I want to make
sure he's okay."

Inuyasha spoke up. "Did you just say Miroku?"

As if noticing him for the first time, Sango frowned. "Yes."

Inuyasha looked at Kagome. "Miroku's a friend of mine.
I want to come with you."

Kagome, clear confusion in her brown eyes, nodded. "Okay."

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Inuyasha knew the Beverly hotel well. He had been here on occasion with a
few clients: wealthy men that liked to have their fun on satin sheets instead
of the backseat of a car. It was a rich man's haunt: fancy furniture and
sparkling chandeliers. Every time he came here before, he had to use the back
entrance. This time though, as he followed Kagome and Sango
into the ritzy place, he was dressed well enough to use the front.

When they stepped up to the elevator, Kagome took his hand but didn't look
at him.

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Inuyasha was worried, had been worried ever since they left the festival.
Now as they padded down the carpeted hallway, he fidgeted. Was Miroku here
with someone, a paying someone? That was the only answer he could come up with.
In the car, Sango told him and Kagome about finding Miroku in the park.
Someone had done him over again. Knowing how bad hurt Miroku had been a couple
of days ago...if he had been beat up too badly....

Sango stepped up to one of the doors.
She tapped the number. "7B"
Sango knocked and they waited. From behind the door came a "Come in."
Sango opened the door and entered. Him and Kagome followed.

The room was huge. Inuyasha glanced around, noting the fine elegance had
not changed, until his line of sight rested on the bed and the person
standing by that bed. From where he was standing, he saw a man whose back
was turned to him. The guy had long black hair, was wearing black pants
with a white long sleeve shirt, and was talking into a cell phone. The man seemed
rich, was staying in an expensive hotel, and was wearing a gold watch.
It all added up why Miroku was here. The guy must have let Miroku out for a
while and Miroku had run into some muggers...or worse..

While Kagome and Sango walked to the bed, the man, still holding the phone and
talking, turned to them and....he...saw...his face.

The man looked at the girls first, then at him.

Both stared.

Inuyasha knew that face. "Sesshoumaru?"

The man, staring with stunned confusion, dropped his cell phone. "Inuyasha?"

He wasn't expecting it. Before he knew it, his older brother crossed the room
and wrapped him in a near bruising hug. "Inuyasha. It's you. I've been looking
for you..."

Inuyasha pushed him off. "You....what are you????" He looked at Miroku on the
bed. "What are you..? Why is Miroku here?" He glared at his older brother.
"Why is he here?"

Sesshoumaru backed up a step. "We need to talk."

Inuyasha, feeling a long lost anger, crossed his arms. "Yeah, we do."

Sesshoumaru went to the door, opened it, then turned. "Sango. A friend of
mine will be coming soon. He's a doctor. Will you watch after Miroku while
Inuyasha and I go talk?"

Sango nodded while sitting on the side of the bed. "Sure."

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The night wind brushed his face as they stepped out onto the hotel's
main balcony. It was a large overlook decorated with hundreds of flowering
plants and small trees. Inuyasha walked to the railing and stopped.
Crossing his arms, he glared up at the stars. "Why are you here, Sesshoumaru?"

Sesshoumaru stepped up beside him. "I came to..find you...and take you
back home with me."

Inuyasha grunted. "It's a little late for that. Ain't it? I'm old enough to
take care of myself."

His older brother sighed. "I came as soon as I knew I was able to take
care of you myself. I own my own business now. I want you to come live with me."

Inuyasha turned, that old buried anger surfacing. "What gives you the right to
come now? I needed you then. You walked out on us! Me, Father, and Mother! You
walked out to find your Independence! After nearly eight years, you think
you can just come back and....."
Inuyasha looked away, angry, not really knowing why he was so angry. "You left
me. You didn't come when I needed you most. Mom and Dad died. Where were
you when I needed you then?"

Sesshoumaru placed a hand on his shoulder, but Inuyasha shrugged it off.
"Inuyasha, I...." He let out a long breath. "I...know now what I did was
wrong. I didn't think you needed me when Mother and Father died. I thought
your foster parents would be a more stable environment for you. At that time
I was still under apprentice and working too hard. I didn't have a home of
my own and I didn't make that much money. I didn't think I could take care
of you like they could."

Inuyasha felt his eyes stinging. He hated hearing these damn excuses.
"They took care of me alright."

Two strong arms wrapped around him again and Inuyasha strained against them.
"Get off me, Sesshoumaru!"

Sesshoumaru's words, racked with emotion, deepened near his
ear. "Don't shut me out, little brother. I'm here now.
I will beg you to forgive me if I have to."

Inuyasha gave up and just stood there while his brother embraced him from
behind. Inside, he relented and let it all go, all the anger and old
pain. There was no point in keeping it now anyway. That stinging drop fell
from his eye, down his cheek, then vanished. "You don't have to beg."

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